LMP Seminar: Odd viscous flow at low Reynolds numbers

Odd viscosity is found in fluids at all scales, ranging from graphene to biological matter to geophysical fluids. To measure odd viscosity in a fluid, one obvious approach is to measure the force it exerts on an obstacle when the fluid flows past it. A characteristic property of odd viscosity is that it can generate lift force even when the obstacle is symmetric. In my talk, I will discuss how this force arises for cylindrical and spherical obstacles. Furthermore, I will discuss the small Reynolds number corrections which highlight the role of convection. I will show that for flow past a sphere, convection not only provides a small Reynolds number correction to lift force but also gives rise to the breaking of fore-aft symmetry of the flow, thereby allowing a stream-induced torque on the sphere to arise.